Mountains Calling! Manali Jam-packed As Tourists Arrive to Celebrate Christmas, New Year | WATCH

Ahead of the Christmas and New Year season, roads in Himachal Pradesh’s Manali are witnessing traffic congestion as several tourists have started to flock to the popular hill station to spend the festive season.

Manali has always been a favourite tourist destination for people and people from all across the country visit there in large numbers, especially during the winter hoping to experience snowfall and spend the festive season with friends and family.

Amidst the overcrowding by tourists, traffic snarls are reported in the region during this time, every year.  This often creates problems for tourists and locals as they find themselves stuck amidst the massive traffic congestion.

Vehicular movement was stalled after some areas near the Atal Tunnel received fresh snowfall on Saturday.

The Atal Tunnel, an engineering marvel in the Himalayas, is a highway tunnel constructed under the Rohtang Pass in the eastern Pir Panjal range. Located on the Leh-Manali Highway in Himachal Pradesh, India, Atal Tunnel holds the distinction of being the longest single-tube highway tunnel situated above 10,000 feet, as per the Border Roads Organisation’s official website.

As per an ANI report, police in Shimla district on Thursday said that a huge rush of visitors ahead of the year-end festivities was expected.

The first-ever winter carnival to draw tourists to the state during this season has also been planned by the Mayor of Shimla City, in order to promote the traditions and culture of Himachal Pradesh.

Tourists have already started arriving in the hilly state in large numbers in anticipation of snowfall in the exotic locales as the year draws to a close.

Speaking to ANI, Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi, Superintendent of Police (SP) of Shimla, said, “The police are expecting over one lakh tourist vehicles to roll into the hill town in the last week of this year.”

Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, commemorated on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration by billions of people worldwide.